7-Eleven Inc., which began life as an icehouse in 1927, has evolved into the world's largest and most recognizable convenience retailer. The chain, a privately held, wholly owned subsidiary of Seven-Eleven Japan Co. Ltd., is famous for its iconic Slurpee and Big Gulp dispensed beverages. It operates, franchises or licenses about 8,700 stores in the U.S. and Canada.

7-Eleven's store count consists primarily of franchisees, and the company has made it a goal to become a virtually 100% franchise-run chain. Companies in the U.S. that are licensed to operate under the 7-Eleven brand are called Domestic Master Franchisees rather than licensees.

The company continues its accelerated growth, expanding in the United States and Canada. Key growth markets for 7-Eleven include Los Angeles, New York City, San Diego, Chicago, San Francisco, Washington, D.C./Baltimore, Seattle, the Tidewater region of Virginia (Virginia Beach, Chesapeake, Portsmouth, Norfolk, etc.), Dallas-Fort Worth, and the Florida markets of Orlando and Tampa.

7-Eleven distinguishes itself from the competition with its many proprietary and private-label items. The company has assembled a "restaurant-quality" team that is introducing more fresh foods to the chain.

Its "Retailer Initiative" allows a store operator to align his or her product assortment with the store's customer preferences, while a proprietary Retail Information System, which was created to simplify inventory management for store operators, and an advanced distribution system ensure the freshest possible product assortment.

Since 2003 CSP magazine has ranked No. 1 in readership and market share over all other industry publications. C-store marketers have identified CSP as the preferred magazine source for their trade marketing communications. With industry-leading, highly targeted circulation to more than 100,000 subscribers, CSP reaches the key convenience retailing decision-makers fifteen times a year.